Freaks
by Anrheithwyr
Summary: "The odds are that all of our children will be like you. No one is quite sure how muggleborns come to be, or how muggle traits work against the wizard ones, but I can tell you, in most cases of a muggle and magic marriage, the children usually end up muggles. I promise, Dudley, your children will be just like you, and not me. You'll never have to worry."


"_The odds are that all of our children will be like you. No one is quite sure how muggleborns come to be, or how muggle traits work against the wizard ones, but I can tell you, in most cases of a muggle and magic marriage, the children usually end up muggles. I promise, Dudley, your children will be just like you, and not me. You'll never have to worry."_

That was what his wife had told him, when Dudley had first raised concerns about having children. No, he did not mind magic nearly as much as he had once. Certainly, he was no longer afraid of it after that year spent in the compnay (and protection) of wizards.

But that did not mean that he had entirely shaken his old prejudices, despite having dated and married a witch. And the risk of having a child who was, well, _different_, did still leave Dudley with some hesitation. After all, should his children end up more like his wife, Anna, or even like Dudley's cousin, Harry, they would no longer be welcome at the house of Vernon Dursley.

Dad had made that fairly clear from the very beginning, that he in no way wanted Dudley having _anything_ to do with that witchy Mumkey girl who lived next door to Dedalus Diggle, but that had, as was usually the case with Dudley, only made him want to seek out the forbidden girl that much more.

This had made Dad _very_ upset, and resulted in the two Dursleys not speaking for nearly two years, until Mum had finally beat sense into them, declaring that she was _not_ going to be losing anymore family members than she already had.

But that did not mean that Dad was suddenly open and approving of Dudley's relationship with Anna, nor did it keep Dad from warning Dudley about the possibility of his children being _freaky_, just like Anna was.

And now, after having known each other for seven years, and having been married for nearly one, Dudley was having to deal with that exact situation being a possible reality. No, Anna had assured him, the baby would probably not show signs of magic for another few years, but it was completely possible that he might have bursts even at a few months old, were he to have Anna's parentage.

"I know you're concerned, Dudley," Anna said from the bed, where she was finishing up nursing Vincent, the little boy swaddled up against her chest. "But he'll be fine, no matter what, right? Even if he _is_ like me, you'll still love him, won't you, Dudley?"

"I…" Dudley didn't not have an answer. He was staring at his wife of nearly a year, staring at his hours old son, and had to admit that he was uncertain as to whether or not he would still be able to love this little boy if, in eleven years, he was to go off to the _wizard school_. "I…"

"Dudley?" Anna asked, shooting him a concerned look as she let the nurse (a muggle, because they were at a muggle hospital, at Dudley's request) take Vincent away. "Dudley, we've talked about this already, haven't we? And you…you _said_ you were fine with having children, no matter what. You _said_ you would love them, Dudley, didn't you? Or was that just what you told me because it was what I wanted to hear?"

"No, no," he replied, eyes widening as he wondered…_what if Vincent did end up like Anna? Like Harry? _And, for a second, his father's teachings flashed through Dudley's mind, and he almost said, like his father would have, that _yes, _he _had_ just said that, because he would never want a _freak_ for a son. But Dudley wasn't his father. "No, Anna, I…I really _will _try, I promise. No matter what, I will do my best to love _all_ of our children."

"All of them?" Anna asked, now amused, one eyebrow raised. "Are you trying to tell me that you'd like more, is that it, Mr. Dursley? We've only just had one, are you already so eager for another child?" Her tone turned more serious as she gave Dudley a piercing look. "You aren't anything like him, you know, not if you don't want to be. He's your dad, I know, but you don't have to be like him, Dudley. You can be better."

"I know, Anna," Dudley sighed, moving to take her lithe hands in his, recalling all the years he had spent bullying his cousin for being a wizard, and now here he was, the father of a potential wizard, the husband of a witch. Was the world just so craving of a little bit of irony? "I know I'm not my dad, but that doesn't make it easier."

…

_15 years later_

Whoever was in charge of the universe must have been having quiet a bit of laugh at Dudley Dursley as he made his way through King's Cross for what would be the ninth time in his life, in search of the column between Platforms 9 and 10.

As a muggle, Dudley would not actually be able to _go_ through the column and to Platform 9 ¾, not like Anna could, but he could stand outside, between 9 and 10, and wave good-bye to his children as they, one by one, ran headfirst into a world that Dudley could never quite understand.

Three children, he had, two boys and a girl. The eldest, Vincent, was fifteen now, a fifth year in a house called _Slytherin _(Dudley thought it sounded sinister, but Vincent swore it was a good house, with decent people).

His daughter, Eden, was thirteen, and in a different house, called _Ravenclaw_, and often wrote lengthy letters home each week about how much she was learning at school, and how much she was learning. According to Eden, the uneasy relationship between cousins Dudley and Harry was not so easily felt by their children, as she often spoke about Harry's sons.

And now, his youngest, Dalton, would be taking the trip for the first time in his life to join his siblings in the strange world of magic and mystery, the world that Dudley would never truly be a part of, no matter how much he might try.

It had been hard, watching as each of his children went through the same stage of discovering their powers and receiving their letters. Each time, a bit of Dudley's father had flared up inside, and Dudley had had to fight the urge to scream _freak _and run away.

Anna had been very helpful, encouraging him, introducing him very, very slowly to different parts of the magical world. He had been allowed to follow her into the magical part of London, which Anna called Diagon Alley, and she had shown him brooms (which Dudley, though he tried, could not get to fly for him), and had even willingly performed small household spells for him.

Harry had been a help, too, offering advice when Dudley was unsure of what to do. Harry had gone with Dudley and Anna to Diagon Alley after Vincent had gotten his letter, and he had told Dudley where to get all the things that Dudley's son would need, even recommending that the boy get an owl, which was even now sitting on top of Vincent's luggage, hooting down at Dudley.

It had not been an easy journey for Dudley, who was doing his best to adjust to the idea that, out of his three children, all had ended up taking after their mother. Though he had lived with magic for most of his life, it was harder to accept that his own children were…_not freaks_, like he had always been raised to believe.

But as Dudley watched his children run through the column between 9 and 10, he knew that he would always love his children, no matter what they were. Magic or muggle, they were _his_, and Dudley would not have wanted anything else.


End file.
